Hey cockerel, don't hump my arm!

[Trish1974]

PLEASE let's not turn this into a typical rooster thread! I am not going to cull him or stop handling him, as he is (so far) the closest thing to a show prospect I have hatched this year.

MJ is a 10 week old Araucana cockerel that was incubator hatched and hand raised. He has nice tufts, beautiful dark legs and so far his body type is spot on. IF I can get over my fear of diseases I would like to show him. Therefore I have been handling him as much as I can. I try to get in 2-3 handling sessions a day. I practice touching him all over, picking him up and holding him until I can feel his body relax, rolling him side to side and spreading his wings. Saturday morning, as I was giving him his food bowl, he jumped on my arm, grabbed my thumb with his beak and started humping my arm . I knocked him off and "pecked" him on top of his head 3-4 times with my finger and he coward down like a squatting pullet. All was good until this morning when he did it again. This time he ran away from my finger pecks and I only got to nail him once. I know he is in his hormonal stage, and so far this has only happened in the early mornings. Should I just keep trying to "peck him" like another chicken would or is there another method to stop him from wanting to get jiggy with my arm? Oh, and there have been no other incidents of any kind so far other than these two.

 

[TwoChicksChix]

He could just find you as his favorite female due to how much contact you have with him daily.

You can keep trying to peck at him, but since he’s young I would give him a bit more time to get his hormones together.

 

[aart]

Familiarity breeds Contempt.
If you plan on having him be a show bird maybe @centrarchid can give you some tips.

 

[Chickassan]

Put on a long sleeved shirt, maybe a glove to hide that scandalous thumb.
Not even kidding.
Mine had a foot thing, shoes stopped it cold.
Good luck, but you're going to break his little heart.

 

[Cyprus]

Put on a long sleeved shirt, maybe a glove to hide that scandalous thumb.
Not even kidding.
Mine had a foot thing, shoes stopped it cold.
Good luck, but you're going to break his little heart.

Why do I find this hysterical

 

[Brahma Chicken5000]

If he is being especially ornery then he shouldn’t get any treats. When you go to give him treats if he jumps on your arm I wouldn’t reward him with treats. When he jumps your arm push him off of your gently and tell him no. He’ll get the message.
Also could help to put him in with some pullets or hens that he can mate with.

 

[Chickassan]

Really it is funny.
Got to laugh, not much else you can do that is going to make it any better.

Why do I find this hysterical

.

 

[Trish1974]

If he is being especially ornery then he shouldn’t get any treats. When you go to give him treats if he jumps on your arm I wouldn’t reward him with treats. When he jumps your arm push him off of your gently and tell him no. He’ll get the message.
Also could help to put him in with some pullets or hens that he can mate with.

Actually he doesn't get ANY treats ever.
Maybe that's the problem!

Put on a long sleeved shirt, maybe a glove to hide that scandalous thumb.
Not even kidding.
Mine had a foot thing, shoes stopped it cold.
Good luck, but you're going to break his little heart.

I will try to make my arm as repulsive as possible!

 

[centrarchid]

Familiarity breeds Contempt.
If you plan on having him be a show bird maybe @centrarchid can give you some tips.

I have hand-raised many chickens, males included. I have yet to have one hump me, and it is also rare for the females to present to me even when a male is absent. It may be owing to genetics. It may be something subtle in terms of how @Trish1974 behaves around her rooster. I do not think pecking him will be effective. I would avoid having him get his jollies / completing the deed. When dogs have done similar I simply keep moving as if the dog is not there and it breaks off.

Has he been exposed to females?

 

[Trish1974]

Has he been exposed to females?

He is in with a full sibling 24/7. I am still on the fence with whether or not sibling is a pullet or cockerel. There has been no hanky panky between the two that I have seen, nor is there any fighting other than brief chest bumping. He has not been IN with other birds, but shares a coop and run divided by fence with 2 hens, a cockbird and 7 one week old chicks.